Carter steps forward and brushes a soft kiss on my forehead. “It’s because sometimes it’s others who see it before we do.”
He plants another kiss on the tip of my nose, and my body now feels fully relaxed. Also, because I brush away my own self-doubt that one day our past will come back to bite us.
“That’s it.” He yanks the scanner out of my hand and tugs my arm to keep us moving. “What kind of crib are we searching for?” Carter is getting us back on track.
“I’m not sure. My uncles mentioned they might build one. Will we need pink or blue blankets?” I slip that in to test him.
He smirks at me. “I’m not sure.” He thwarted my attempt to break him.
Something else flickers inside me, and I can’t keep it in. Another strike of silence falls upon us when I pull on his arm to stop him on his quest. “Carter…” He stares at me and waits. “What you said earlier about not needing to travel the world to figure out that I’m a good person… I think I realized that the world is big and I’m just a tiny speck on the map, but…” I inhale a sharp breath. “I only want to be that small speck on a map with you.”
He steps forward and combs his hands through my hair to cradle my head with that familiar glint in his eyes. “I’m happy you realized.” He kisses the top of my head. It’s a little while of us standing in an embrace in the middle of the store before he breaks our sentimental moment and moves me forward. “Now, let’s continue with what we were supposed to do today. Go around this store as parents to our kid.”
I pinch his arm as we turn down the aisle. When I see a basket of the cream and shampoo that I want, I point for him to scan. Then there is the bouncy seat I see up ahead, and there are blankets in the distance. The next hour is fun, and I needed to laugh, it’s cleansing for the soul.
Walking between the hanging clothes, I can tell Carter is toying with me. With his coy smile, we walked around the girl section which causes my brows to rise, only for him to then walk us through the boy section. Finally, he settles on the clothes that can be for either and scans away. Mostly, white onesies. He’s not going to falter.
* * *
By the timewe’re finished and have picked up lunch from the drive-thru on the way home, I concede that I’m in a good mood.
Walking into the house, I stop at the bottom of the staircase and decide that I need to change. Clothes are fitting a little differently these days.
“I’m going to steal one of your button-up shirts from your closet. I’m running out of clothing options while the kid morphs inside my body. I’m going to order a few things online later,” I say, and I’m already on the first step before Carter can answer.
He pats my ass. “Stealing might get you put in jail, Rosie.” His voice is full of sweltering innuendo.
“I might be on board with that.”
Carter follows me because he needs to get out of his uniform, and we’ll just have an easy night in.
When I’m halfway inside the walk-in closet, I’m already peeling off my long-sleeve shirt to leave me in my black bra. I can hear Carter opening a drawer in the other room. My eyes search for a shirt. Buttons allow me to loosen where needed, plus the smell of Carter getting soaked into my skin isn’t a bad thing either.
I spot a light blue one and pull it off the hanger, only to notice a shoebox with a lid ajar on the shelf behind. It draws my attention a little longer because it seems to be empty except for a few things.
The feeling of arms snaking around my middle and over my bump surprises me. “No you don’t.” Carter nuzzles his mouth into my neck. He is down to his white undershirt that always highlights his arm muscles.
I smile. “Why not?”
“Did you find a shirt?”
He’s brushing past my question. “Uh, yeah.”
“Good. We should go find a movie to watch.”
I twirl around in his arms, smiling because now I’m even more intrigued. “You didn’t answer my question.”
“Nothing.”
I squint and study his eyes that seem nervous.
Ignoring him, I turn and reach for the box and pick it up to check inside. Suddenly, I know why he didn’t want me to find it.
My fingers wrap around the circular rings in the bottom of the box, and I slowly hold them up, letting the shoebox fall.
A giant wave of emotion takes over my body. My throat runs dry as my eyes drill into my palm that’s holding two rings. One that was his and the one I gave back, even though I wanted to keep it to remember our chapter, but I didn’t, because it made it easier for me to leave.
I can hear Carter sigh behind me while I get entranced at the view.
